Alvin Lee

Today, I am going a different direction with my artist pick. Instead of an indie or offbeat pick, I will be writing about an incredible artist that's pretty well known in a lot of circles. With an impressive resume including Marvel, DC, Image, Capcom, Udon Entertainment, Toyota, Riot Games, and more, it's safe to say that Alvin Lee's unending talent is not going to waste.

Alvin Lee is a Canadian comic artist with an anime-inspired art style. I was introduced to him on his work reviving the Street Fighter comics by Udon Entertainment. These comics floored me with the quality of art, and a list of compliments can go on for a while. What I think stands out the most with his work, is the amount of perspective work that is so elusive to many professional artists. By having a strong grasp of perspective, Alvin Lee's characters have a powerful dynamic quality that lends itself perfectly for action scenes. In the comics, page after beautiful splash page show Ryu coming straight towards the reader with movement and impact that top tier comic artists spend lifetimes to achieve. What's even more impressive is looking at his work now, he's even better.

His success led to work with Capcom doing artwork for the official Street Fighter releases. As with so many top echelon creators, Alvin Lee has moved on to do pin-ups and cover art for a wide variety of companies. Recently, he has signed on with Riot Games (of League of Legends fame) to do artwork.

I have had the pleasure of meeting Alvin Lee at the New York Comic Con, and was taken aback by how friendly and humble he is. I missed my chance to get something signed, but have made it my goal to get a signed print from him in person.